? about horse shoes

what kind of steel is it and can it be welded? i tried to weld it to itself with no luck today. i got it red and fluxed it good with borax then got it yellow with some sparks and it didnt weld at all. i tried it three times with no luck . whats the deal with this stuff? boo

Hey Boo, are they Niki's? Not sure about the steel but wonder if its the borax your using? Are you using 20 Mule Team? Sounds like your getting them hot enough and the steel type should not make much difference. You need to use anhydrous borax. Ray

yea ray its 20 mule team. how long can 20 mule team set before it goes bad or does it ever go bad? its ben out side under my shed for about 6 months in a bucket . could that have anything to do with it ? and also should ii clean the horse shoes to clean metal or will a little rust hurt anything? boo

Hey boo, a guy I was with in Nam was named boo, I don't suppose it's you. Have you been able to get welds with then 20 Mule Team before? Most the guys that do damascus or other forge welding us anhydrous borax, not the same as 20 Mule Team. 20 Mule Team still has water in it and needs to be removed by cooking it till it becomes cristalized then you smash it into powder and then use it as flux. What are you trying to do with the horse shoes? Ray, used to call me Frog over in Nam..

Ray i was one year old when that war started and three when my dad went to nam . my brother gave me this name when he was a baby and its stuck with me eversence.

ive welded with mule team before, cables and mildsteel. but i cant get this to weld for some reason. maybe there is something in the shoes to keep them from welding?/????.

what im doing with them is bending them over onto itself and trying to weld the solid part in the middle and draw it out to make a hoof scraper for horses. then take and put a small piece of wood in the middle of the back part and put horse shoe nails in it for the handle. ive made one that is real cool but i had to draw it out and twist it together to make the scraper . id like to be able to weld it to make it stronger. boo

I've never really delt with horse shoes, wish I could be of some help to you. Maybe if you found some older horse shoes. The newer ones could be made out of just about anything. Hey Boo, Have a Happy New Year!!!:rollin: Ray